It is official. It is now impossible for us to care any less about the Super Bowl (or, as some are calling it, “The Pot Bowl”) than we do now.
But we still have this week’s TMQ to get through after the jump…
Archive for the ‘Law’ Category
TMQ Watch: January 21, 2014.
Friday, January 24th, 2014Random notes: January 22, 2014.
Wednesday, January 22nd, 2014You’re going down in flames, you tax-fattened hyena!
He is the walrus, goo goo a joub.
Is Gary Kasparov trying to buy the presidency of the World Chess Federation?
“Leong” is Ignatius Leong, who lives in Singapore and is the current general secretary of the federation. He serves under the current president, Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, who is also running for re-election to the federation presidency. Kasparov’s spokespeople say that draft contract has been superseded. But if Kasparov is trying to buy the office, would that be a bad thing? In the last election
(“Karpov” is Anatoly Karpov. You know, the former world champion and the Karpov who played Kasparov.)
And this is interesting:
So he’s an ex-politician who went into chess?
Ilyumzhinov was also tight buddies with the late unlamented Muammar Qaddafi.
You’re going down in flames, you tax-fattened hyena! Part deux.
Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas acknowledged Tuesday that a taxpayer-funded project to install a security system in a converted garage at his home involved improvements “over and above” that job, but said he reimbursed the county for the upgrades.
The Times had disclosed that county-paid crews worked at the supervisor’s Leimert Park home for a week and replaced the garage’s interior walls, installed electrical wiring and equipment, and put in appliances, including a wall-mounted air conditioner and heater and a television.
How the Statesman got scooped on the Wendy Davis story. (No paywall.)
You could hear the music on the AM radio…
Friday, January 17th, 2014When was the last time you listened to the radio?
Actually, I still do, mostly when I’m driving around with Mom and Jeff Ward is on. If I’m alone in my own car, though, radio has become to me something like a buggy whip.
But there are some people who still need buggy whips, such as the Amish. And there are some people who still need radios. Like Federal prisoners.
But what makes this New Yorker piece more interesting to me is…the SRF-39FP is actually a pretty good radio. It uses one AA battery, will run for 40 hours, and:
I almost want to pick one up. (I checked; there aren’t any listed on eBay right now.)
(By way of the newsycombinator Twitter feed.)
Fundament, hindquarters, hind end, keister, posterior.
Tuesday, January 14th, 2014Donavan Raynold Hunt, aka “Tanka 2”, is in custody.
Mr. Hunt was involved in an incident last November at a place called the “Quantum Lounge”. (The Statesman does not note if there are any cats in the Quantum Lounge, nor does it mention the living or dead status of said cats, nor does it give a position for said establishment. I think we can safely assume it has zero momentum.)
Anyway, Mr. Hunt was performing with his musical group, “Da Young Outlawz”, when they got into a dispute with some other folks.
“hit in the butt”? Are the Statesman writers and editors ten year olds? Couldn’t they have found a better word than “butt”? Perhaps “upper part of the thigh” as a homage to Robert B. Parker
But “in the butt”, Bob? Really?
Kelly Thomas.
Tuesday, January 14th, 2014Since I’ve started thinking seriously (as a grown-up adult, not a child) about criminal justice issues, I’ve maintained certain positions.
One of those positions is that the verdict of a jury deserves a certain amount of deference. Yes, I may disagree with the verdict the jury returns. But: they were there in the courtroom. I was not. They watched all the testimony in person. I did not. They were able to see subtle cues of tone and inflection. I was not. At best, what I am basing my judgment on is what I read in the newspaper or saw on TV. These things are subject to conscious and unconscious bias, as well as errors and omissions. How can I question the verdict a jury returns without all the information they had access to? George Zimmerman or OJ Simpson, I’ve always thought the jury should be respected.
But I’m having trouble reconciling that with the acquittals of Manuel Ramos and Jay Cicinelli in the beating death of Kelly Thomas. (Previously. Also previously and graphic image warning.)
How does a jury return a verdict that says hitting a man in the face twenty times with a Taser is okay? How does a jury return a verdict that says telling a man “See these fists? They’re getting ready to [expletive] you up.” and then beating him until he can’t breathe and his blood is pooling on the sidewalk is not, at the very least, involuntary manslaughter? What evidence did they see that we did not?
And is it a compromise of my principles that I’m hoping the Justice Department indicts Ramos and Cicinelli?
Fiat justitia ruat caelum. But what is justice in this case?
You’re going down in flames, you tax-fattened hyena! watch (#7 in a series)
Monday, January 13th, 2014In some haste, because I’m out and about. But: as previously announced, and as everyone expected, Robert “Ratso” Rizzo, former city manager of Bell, has pled guilty to “filing a false tax return and conspiring to file a false tax return”.
Also as expected, Rizzo has agreed to “cooperate with federal authorities”, which is generally being interpreted to mean he’s going to roll on his former subordinate, Angela Spaccia, once she’s actually charged. (Tax charges against her are expected, but have not been filed yet.)
Also as previously discussed, it is expected that Rizzo’s sentence (which could be “up to eight years in federal prison and a $500,000 fine on the tax case”, though I am not a lawyer and am not clear if that’s within the federal sentencing guidelines) will be served concurrently with the twelve years he’s already serving on the other corruption charges he’s pled to. I’d like to see him serve more time, but this is still better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick.
Dunder Mifflin won’t save you.
Saturday, January 11th, 2014The city of Scranton, Pennsylvania has a problem.
How much?
The city already has a 5% tax on “live entertainment”, is discussing a 10% “drink tax”, and has jacked up parking rates. That’s going to help a lot:
I imagine a lot of those folks are going downtown and drinking in the downtown bars. Both of them. There’s only two left: all the others have gone out of business.
How bad is it? Many of the city residents quoted in the LAT would welcome a municipal bankruptcy.
Why not indeed?
Juggalo law.
Wednesday, January 8th, 2014This by way of a rather cryptic tweet from Popehat:
Fucking Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, how do they work? http://t.co/IoWI22Dsgw
— Popehat (@Popehat) January 8, 2014
(Sorry, Mom.)
Not being a lawyer, I’m not sure what Popehat is referring to here as far as the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, though I’m hoping it wasn’t just a play on ICP’s most famous quote and we’ll get a fuller explanation later. As a guess, I want to say that Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope may not have standing to sue, as it isn’t clear to me that they have actually been damaged directly by the government’s actions.
Random notes: January 8, 2014.
Wednesday, January 8th, 2014Jeff Ireland out as general manager in Miami, on the heels of the Mike Sherman firing. This is being spun as “by mutual agreement”:
106 individuals charged in a massive, multi-decade long Social Security disability fraud scheme. Included in the indictments are 72 former NYC police officers and eight former NYC firefighters.
More to come. I’m getting a slow start this morning, but I do plan a gun show post as soon as I’m able to get one up. Assuming Lawrence doesn’t beat me to it.
Banana republicans watch: January 7, 2014.
Tuesday, January 7th, 2014This story started breaking this morning, but I wanted to wait for the official word before posting anything.
Sheriff Baca and his department have been a frequent subject of coverage here, most recently as the result of 18 of his deputies being indicted on federal charges. But that’s just part of the story; Baca’s department has a long history of issues, including deputies beating the crap out of each other at the Christmas party, questionable hiring decisions, and questionable tactics. Browse the “California Uber Alles” category for more.
I have the feeling that this is another one of those “pass the popcorn” moments, and I look forward to finding out what happens next.
Legal update part 2.
Friday, January 3rd, 2014Gerhard Becker has pled guilty to involuntary manslaughter and been sentenced to serve one year in jail. With time served and time off for good behavior, it seems likely he will go free in six months.
I’ve written about this case previously. For those who don’t recall: Becker was an architect who remodeled a home in Hollywood Hills. After the final inspection, and after having lied to the inspectors, Becker installed fire pits designed for outdoor use inside the home. The home eventually caught fire, and Glenn Allen, a firefighter with the LA Fire Department, was fatally injured while fighting the fire. Allen’s death resulted in the charge against Becker.
Legal update part 1.
Friday, January 3rd, 2014The lawsuit by Alexander Calder’s heirs against his former dealer has been dismissed.
In a decision dated Dec. 23, Judge Shirley Werner Kornreich wrote that “all of these allegations are so patently inadequate that the court can only conclude that they were brought solely for the purposes of harassment or embarrassment, without any consideration of their legal sufficiency.”
The judge also invoked the statute of limitations, writing that the plaintiffs were trying to litigate issues that stretched back “decades without any personal knowledge or contemporaneous records, where nearly all of the people who had personal knowledge of the facts are dead.”
(I expect to have a second legal update later today; I’m just waiting on events.)
Random notes: January 3, 2014.
Friday, January 3rd, 2014(* Offer not valid outside of New York City.)
I’m not sure I understand the point of this article. Ostensibly, it is about the supposed economic impact on the neighborhood businesses of “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark” closing.
But even a full house at the 1,930-seat Foxwoods, the biggest Broadway theater, is just a drop in the bucket of the roughly 400,000 people moving through Times Square daily at this time of year.
And it can be hard to determine just where audience members for “Spider-Man” — some 89 percent of whom are from out of town, according to the show’s most recent research — have been spending their dollars, though some businesses popular with tourists seeking a classic Broadway experience say the show’s absence will be felt.
So it doesn’t seem like the NYT has any way to quantify the impact, just a bunch of anecdotes from businesses in the neighborhood. Some of them expect reduced business, others say they expect people (especially actors) to keep showing up. Is there a point?
Strippers. Always with the strippers.
Is that $1 million from each club, or $1 million total? And is it just me, or is there something odd about private businesses giving money to the police department to enforce the law?
Random notes: December 28, 2013.
Saturday, December 28th, 2013Desert Hot Springs, California is in trouble.
Why? I’ll give you one guess.
Last week, the city cut all municipal salaries, including those of the police, by 22 percent. The city also capped “incentive pay” and cut back on holiday and vacation days. Naturally, the police officer’s association is stating these cuts are illegal.
Desert Hot Springs has a current population of around 27,000.
Oh, and by the way: Desert Hot Springs filed for bankruptcy in 2001, and is still making payments on a $10 million civil judgment against the city.
But, you know, the police aren’t the only people who get large salaries.
You don’t say.
That’s good money. I wonder when they can put in for retirement.
The paper of record seems to want readers to be shocked and appalled at how much stagehands are paid. Personally, I’m glad to hear that they’re making big money; I think they have every right to negotiate lucrative contracts with their employers, and I don’t see any reason to be indignant that “the four top stagehands at the Metropolitan Opera earned more than $500,000 each in total compensation (including retirement and other benefits), tax filings showed.“
Holmes for the Holidays.
Friday, December 27th, 2013Here’s a nice little Christmas present – slightly late, but who cares? (I celebrate Christmas through January 6th, anyway.)